Blog

Alerts and notifications

8 February 2019

How SMS API integration benefits your business communications

An SMS API provides a simple and powerful way for developers to connect to an SMS gateway and send messages quickly and easily. APIs are secure, reliable, flexible, and enable any application, website or system to send or receive messages around the globe.

This is particularly useful when your businesses outgrows a manual SMS system such as Email to SMS or Web SMS. As your communication needs become more sophisticated, an SMS API facilitates the flow of information between your programs, enabling your business to run more efficiently and provide customer notifications 24/7.

SMS API integration offers measurable benefits as it allows you to access any of your API provider‘s services directly into your line-of-business applications.

Benefits of SMS API integration

Automation for better efficiency

SMS APIs allow for automation of processes for sending and receiving your SMS messages. Using APIs can make workflows faster and more productive, reducing the need for manual management by staff.

For example, an API can replace a manual process performed between two applications. Similarly, if your business sends the same message on a regular basis, an SMS API can seamlessly distribute these messages without manual involvement. Time-sensitive messages can be scheduled to send at an exact time, so the customer receives their appointment reminder, confirmation, or status update at precisely the right time.

Automation of tasks using an SMS API ensures your communications go out as required, as well as enabling you to better allocate resources and free staff to focus on more critical tasks.

Greater visibility and tracking

An API enables tracking of messages with delivery receipts that show your application the exact time each message was delivered to the customer’s handset. This provides your application with an audit trail and enables escalation in the event of non-delivery.

Another feature of an SMS API is message tagging, which informs your application exactly which outbound message corresponds to a given reply. This is important for transactional messaging applications, enabling you to match responses with messages.

Flexibility with more features

An API also provides direct access to the components of the service, so you can easily incorporate the features of the provider’s SMS gateway into your own systems. For example, you can choose how you want to send and receive bulk SMS, that is, to a targeted group, via any application, or spontaneously. Many other features are also available.

Moreover, as the API evolves over time with more features or functionality, your organisation can take advantage of these enhancements. At MessageMedia, you can rest assured that these additional features and functions are rolled out without disrupting your applications or their links to the SMS API.

In addition, by using an API, your business has full control over the content and services you use the most.

Fast, reliable and secure delivery

An API provides direct access to the SMS gateway, which means you also have access to enhanced speed and reliability. You can deliver hundreds or even thousands of text messages within seconds, from your own desktop, to your intended audience.

If your API provider has the right level of security, the API ensures a secure connection from your systems and your provider.

Integration with other systems

The API works across all your platforms and applications, enabling you to manage your messaging from the one interface. This integrated developer experience makes it easier and simpler, and provides a more cohesive view of your overall communications.

Clear results and reporting

An API provides a robust method to get notifications out to customers at the right time, but ad hoc reporting doesn’t necessarily need to be done via the API. A desirable API is one that is also supported by a user interface, so that regular repeated tasks can be integrated via the API, but infrequent, ad hoc tasks, such as billing or message reporting, can be achieved by a person via a user interface.

Conclusion

Using an SMS API provides more benefits than simply sending messages. An API also brings greater automation, efficiency and flexibility to your communications. Finally, choosing an API backed by a user-centric interface will also put you at a distinct advantage.